KATHMANDU, OCTOBER 30

Officials have reported that over 20,000 tourists visited Chitwan National Park (CNP) during this year's Dashain vacation.

Of the total visitors, 13,233 were Nepalis. The CNP collected Rs18.54 million in revenue from these visitors during the Dashain vacation.

According to the CNP, the number of visitors increased this year compared to previous years. Ganesh Prasad Tiwari, the Information Officer of the CNP, mentioned that a total of 779 tourists from SAARC countries visited the CNP, while 6,048 tourists came from other countries.

Most visitors entered the CNP through the Sauraha area. Tiwari stated that nearly 18,000 visitors entered the CNP through Sauraha and participated in 404 jeep safaris.

Additionally, around 1,100 tourists entered the CNP through the Kasara area. Some tourists also visited the CNP from the Madi area, Amaltari area, and Kujauli area.

Furthermore, the number of foreigners visiting Sauraha has seen a significant increase in recent days. Hoteliers reported that an average of 1,500 foreigners visited the site every day.

Hotel occupancy in Sauraha reached as high as 95 percent, and hotel bookings have already reached 75 percent for December, as the number of foreigners rapidly increased after the Dashain festival.